Every year we hear about low voter turnout rates, decreased trust of our politicians, and reduced participation in public engagement opportunities. I believe that this stems from a lack of transparency, accountability and from a lack of genuine opportunities to influence government decisions. This is especially true when it comes to the spending of tax dollars.

We’ve seen steps in the right direction through public engagement sessions and what-we-heard documents but, unfortunately, these have fallen short on establishing an accountable process that links residents’ input to budgetary commitments. As a candidate running for Councillor in Ward 4, I’m looking to change this.